


Art /Words: Secret Santa

by LFB72



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Art, Christmas, Dragons, Eggs, Fantasy, Fluff and Humor, Getting Together, Gift Giving, Happy Ending, M/M, Magic, Misunderstandings, Pining, Secret Santa, Snow, Traditional Media, Winter Knights 2020
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-11
Updated: 2021-01-11
Packaged: 2021-03-10 01:08:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,991
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27962042
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LFB72/pseuds/LFB72
Summary: 3 festive paintings and words:Merlin miraculously pulls out Arthur’s name in the secret Santa, but what to get the man who has everything? Merlin thinks he has found the perfect gift.Art to illustrate the following prompt:Character A gifts Character B with what they think is a very pretty ornament for Christmas, only for it to turn out to be a live dragon egg. https://winterknights.livejournal.com/74243.html?thread=445955#t445955
Relationships: Merlin/Arthur Pendragon (Merlin)
Comments: 21
Kudos: 82
Collections: WinterKnights 2020 - a Merlin Winter/Holiday Fest





	Art /Words: Secret Santa

**Author's Note:**

  * For [SlantedKnitting](https://archiveofourown.org/users/SlantedKnitting/gifts).



> For the lovely Slantedknitting, who wished for this prompt, I hope you like your gift. 
> 
> Thank you for the mods for running this wonderful fest and to my fantastic Christmas beta elves who did all the quality control checks for Santa. Merlin characters are the property of Shine and BBC. No profit is being made, and no copyright infringement is intended.

[](https://imgur.com/b38SZe2)Secret Santa [](https://imgur.com/b38SZe2)

Merlin scrunched up his eyes to protect them against the onslaught of icy spikes hitting his face and ears. Snow may be beautiful, glorious and Christmassy but it really hurt! 

His thin woolly hat and gloves were woefully insufficient at keeping out the cold but although his body shivered his heart was warm; for somehow Merlin had miraculously pulled out Arthur’s name in the secret Santa.

Arthur Pendragon was Merlin’s work colleague and secret crush. Merlin had not been at Pendragon enterprises that long, he only arrived in Camelot a few months ago and thus had only admired the man with blond hair, golden skin and chiselled features from afar. Arthur was heir to the company and pretty much unobtainable. 

Merlin pressed the small square of paper with Arthur’s name neatly written on it between his fingers; this was a gift from the gods, a perfect opportunity to make himself known since their paths seldom crossed at work. Merlin’s younger self would have even said it was magic, but as a sensible young man he no longer believed in such things.

As a child, odd occurrences frequently happened around Merlin, sometimes the things he wished for most transpired to the point he started to believe it was actually him and not merely coincidence. His imagination was fuelled with his uncle's stories of magic, knights and dragons. Fantasy and make believe maybe, but to a young Merlin, who lapped up every word like a puppy at the food trough, it seemed all too real. 

Had Merlin actually been in possession of magic, he could have helped his mum when she got sick, but he couldn’t. He was no wizard; he was nothing special at all. After she died, Merlin came to live with his Uncle Gaius, but he no longer wanted to hear about magic. Merlin was clumsy and chaotic, but he worked hard at school and university. He excelled in computing and now worked in IT in the most prestigious company in the country. 

Merlin stopped walking. He’d been so busy daydreaming he’d not been paying attention to where he was going and had no idea where he was; a narrow cobbled street. As far as he knew Camelot did not have a high crime rate but being alone down some dark alley was probably not advisable even if it was so close to Christmas.

This must be the old part of Camelot – medieval, some said. He’d never ventured here before, yet Merlin’s feet had inadvertently taken him where he’d wanted to go, since where better to find an interesting gift than this part of the city? The streets were lined with antique shops and curiosities that looked like they belonged in another time. Arthur was rich and probably had everything, so Merlin had wanted to get him something special and out of the ordinary, a second-hand book, a fancy pen or an ornament of some kind – this was perfect.

The shop window cast a golden glow on the snow-covered pavement, it had thick panes of glass and a dusting of white flakes had built up against the lattice. Merlin peered inside. A treasure trove of objects was on display: bejewelled cups, gold and silver trinkets, a carved wooden dragon, old books and there in the centre of the display a large egg. It was beautiful, a pale iridescent blue with a rounded base and pointed tip – equally both majestic and mesmerising.

[ ](https://imgur.com/QJIrefW)

Merlin smiled, faced with such a wondrous object. It could not help but evoke a childhood memory. One of Gaius’ stories, discarded, dismissed and forgotten now pushed itself to the forefront of his mind re-emerging like spring flowers after harsh winter.

“Long ago, in a time of myth and magic there were dragons and dragon lords. These lords were highly revered and sought after as they had the ability to communicate with the mighty dragons, to fly on their backs and wield a special kind of powerful magic. When it came time to choose a partner, the dragon lord would present their betrothed with an egg. If it was a good match, _a soul match_ , then the dragon would hatch. Soul matches were very rare and over time fewer and fewer dragons were born until centuries went by and there were no new dragons and those that were left grew old and weary fading from the world and taking their magic with them.” 

“But what happened to eggs?” Merlin would squeal.

“No one knows,” his uncle used to say. “Lost, stolen, and broken probably... but I believe they’re out there somewhere, waiting to be discovered when the time is right.” 

At this point, Gaius would ruffle Merlin’s hair and tuck him into bed, telling him he needed to sleep and there would be no more stories despite plaintive pleas. The little boy with wide earnest eyes would just get the ‘eyebrow’ and that was the end of that.

Modern day Merlin blinked a few times, sniffed and rubbed his check.

“Glorious, isn’t it?”

“What!” Merlin jumped and spun around to see an elderly gentleman, curled over with age, his skin creased, yellow and brittle like parchment. He cleared his throat, which gave the illusion of heavy smoke rising from his nostrils, such was the coldness of the air.

The man motioned at the window with a claw-like hand. “The dragon egg.”

“Yes, it's beautiful.”

“Is the young man interested in purchasing the egg?” He enquired smiling and showing a lot of unusually sharp, white teeth.

“You own it?” Merlin stammered. 

“I have many precious things. The egg has been in my possession for a long time”. He gestured at the shop and added. “I have quite the collection of interesting and unique artefacts.” 

“So I see.” Merlin said. He did not know what the egg was made of, some sort of fine and expensive porcelain he supposed and probably way out of his budget.

“It looks very valuable.” 

The old man chuckled. “Oh it is, very precious. Tell me young man – if it were yours, what would you do with it?”

Merlin blushed. “I wanted to buy it as a gift for someone special.”

The man’s eyes lit up. “A lover?” He breathed.

Merlin coughed, face burning as bright as if his head had been plunged into flames. “Not quite,” he squeaked.

“But you’d like him to be, yes?” The man purred.

“Yes,” Merlin admitted, unable to stop the secret popping out of his mouth.

“Very well, Merlin. Your story has touched my ancient soul and since it is Christmas, I will give you the egg to present to your other half. If he accepts it, destiny will once more be set in motion. Should you fail, the egg must be returned to me.”

Merlin had not recalled telling the man his name and wondered if his ID badge was on show. Nor had he advertised his sexuality, not that he ever hid the fact he was gay but he didn't go around shouting about it either.

The man gave him an intense stare. Merlin forced himself to look away and began fumbling in his wallet, pulling out some notes.

He felt a firm grip around the top of his arm and nails that dug into his skin. 

“That won’t be necessary,” the old man said. “I only ask that you return and tell me the outcome of your quest.” 

It looked as if Merlin’s arm would not be relinquished until he agreed. “Alright.” He said.

“I have your word?”

Merlin nodded.

“Very well.” He held the egg towards Merlin. 

How the old man had managed to slide into the shop and retrieve it in the time it took Merlin to dig his money out of his pocket was anyone's guess. Merlin stuffed his wallet back into his pocket and accepted the precious object with some trepidation.

He expected it to be cold, light and hollow but even through his mittens the egg felt warm and heavy – solid. He removed a mitten and ran his fingers over its smooth surface which made his hand tingle.

“Thank you.” 

Merlin looked up but the street was bare, the lights were out in the shop and the shutters were down. There was no sign of the man, not even footprints in the snow. Merlin shook his head and looked back at the egg, expecting it to be gone also but it was still there, firm in his grasp: beautiful, blue and lustrous.

On the ground was a tiny business card. Merlin bent over to pick it up, careful not to damage the egg.

The card had one word written on it: Kilgharrah.

Secret Santa was a disaster. Merlin waited expectedly for Arthur to open his gift, excitement growing as his work colleagues sat around a table having feasted on Christmas dinner. Each one tore open paper and squealed at what was inside. Finally, it was Arthur’s turn and when he carefully prized the wrappings off to reveal the egg the room fell silent. All his colleagues turned to look. Arthur’s face was not filled with wonder or joy as Merlin’s had been when he’d first seen the egg, it was startled surprise. That was not the worst of it. 

[ ](https://imgur.com/rW3d36c)

“Thank you,” Arthur said, blushing, then hastily covered the paper over the egg, got up and purposely marched to his office and slammed the door and remained cooped inside for the rest of the day.

Cenred took less than ten seconds to declare it the most ridiculous gift ever, since it was supposed to be Christmas and not Easter concluding the person who gave the present must be some sort of imbecile. Sophia raged that it would never have happened if she’d been in charge like normal.

Gwaine leaned back in his chair, flicked his hair and declared, “Well, he’s taken it with him, if it turns out to be chocolate the greedy git better not eat it all himself because if he does it will be goodbye firm bum hello big tum!” At this point, Gwaine caressed his own washboard abs and winked at Merlin.

It was in situations like this that made Merlin wish with all his heart he could apparate, he could not bear to be in the room any longer - the gods must have taken pity on him as he was saved by his pager going off. Thankful that he could swiftly exit the room he left as fast as he could.

The next two days Arthur headed straight for his office, he was noncommutative and unavailable.

The only thing Merlin could do was try to retrieve the egg and return it to Kilgharrah. He did not want to do that at work and let everyone know it was him that had gifted the deputy CEO of the most prestigious company in the country with a giant blue egg. _What was he thinking?_ Nor did he want to look up Arthur's address or follow him because that was bordering on creepy.

On Christmas Eve with a heavy heart, Merlin decided to head back to the old part of Camelot, find Kilgharrah and tell him he'd messed up spectacularly. 

He could pretend it all went well. But something about that wily old man made Merlin think he wouldn’t get away with it.

As he set off, the snow began to fall heavily. It had not melted from the few days previously and now there was a virtual blizzard. Merlin squinted against the onslaught and started moving in the direction of where the shop had been except an hour later, he was in a residential area.

Merlin tried to call up google maps on his phone but could not get any signal. Then the back door of a house opened and a tall blond man in a red jumper stepped out holding a bin bag.

Salvation!

“Excuse me!” Merlin called then stopped dead when he recognised the man carrying the rubbish as Arthur Pendragon.

Arthur dropped the bag in the wheelie bin then lifted a hand towards his face. He looked left and right, frowning.

“Over here.” Merlin waved.

“Do I know you?” 

“Merlin, Merlin Emrys. We work together.” Merlin crossed the road stopping at the gate.

Arthur was peering at him suspiciously. “Why are you here?”

“I got lost, I was trying to find the old part of town…” Arthur did not say anything just looked expectant so Merlin rambled on. “Listen I’m so sorry about the egg, I erm… I can take it back—”

“No!” Arthur snapped.

“Really? But if you don't like it, I can get something else. I need it back.”

Arthur stopped, pointing his finger at Merlin’s chest. “Wait, you gave me the egg?”

“Yes.”

“You! Gave me the egg!” Arthur repeated.

“Yes, I thought we’d established that and that I’d return it if you don’t like it.”

Now that they were closer Merlin noticed scratches on Arthur’s arms, dishevelled hair and a hole in his jumper.

“Arthur, is everything alright?”

“More than alright, everything is perfect!” Arthur shook his head then tipped it back and let out a raucous laugh.

“I fail to see what is so amusing,” said Merlin, feeling slightly unnerved by such erratic behaviour.

Arthur took a few moments to calm down then he grabbed Merlin by the arms. 

“I honestly thought it was Sophia!” he said breathlessly, letting Merlin go. “Every year she rigs it, so I’m her secret Santa and each year the presents are more and more inappropriate. Last time it was sexy underwear that I opened in front of my father. It doesn’t matter how often I tell her I’m just not interested, she’s not the right person, she’s not even the right sex – it doesn’t get through and then this year it was a bloody dragon egg!”

“Wait a minute, you knew it was a dragon’s egg?” Merlin said dumbfounded.

“Not a real one obviously,” said Arthur. “I thought it was symbolic but then it hatched and that was that. I was going to be stuck with her and I’d somehow been wrong about my own sexuality—”

“What do you mean, it hatched? Don’t be ridiculous…”

At that moment something white fluttered out of Arthur's door and lurched towards them, it moved like a bird but wasn’t. As the creature advanced, Merlin saw it more clearly. There was no mistaking it: a little white dragon.

“Well, I’ll be damned!” he said. “It’s real.”

The dragon chirruped and flew towards Merlin’s outstretched hand 

[ ](https://imgur.com/MzVwTWV)

“Aithusa,” he said, not knowing where the word came from. Aithusa landed gracefully, walked up Merlin’s arm, dug her claws in his shoulder for purchase and nuzzled his hair. Arthur’s scratches and holes in his jumper made sense now.

“Well, she certainly likes you!” Arthur exclaimed with a wry smile. “I guess you’ll be asking me to marry you then?”

“What?” Merlin sputtered

Arthur held up his hands, “Joking!”

“No seriously, how are you alright with this stuff, how do you even know about it?” 

Merlin’s head felt ready to explode. He kept thinking someone must have put something in the brownies he ate at lunch time – he’d had at least two, possibly three – and yet every time he looked away, Arthur was still there. Arthur with his beautiful blue eyes, flaxen hair and chiselled jaw.

“When we were small the family physician would tell us these crazy stories.” Arthur began. “Father didn’t approve of course, but he was away a lot and my sister and I lapped them up, magic, knights, dragons we couldn’t get enough even after he left it fuelled our interest.”

“Why did he leave?” Merlin asked with a dry throat already knowing the answer.

“Some sort of family crisis, I think. Sick relative I believe.” 

“Gaius.” 

“Yes, you know him?”

“He’s my uncle.”

“Really? Small world.”

“It would appear so.” Then not wanting to dwell on his past, Merlin said, “What made you believe in it all?”

“Well, I didn't at first but as we grew up my sister was bothered by nightmares. She got terribly distressed, often dreaming about awful events before they happened. We thought it was just coincidence but the things she saw kept coming true. She was messed up for a while in and out of hospital then she met her half-sister and things seem to get better. After six months she confided in me, told me that she had magic. I thought it was nonsense but I saw her light a flame from across the room. Suddenly those childhood stories did not seem so farfetched after all.” Arthur smiled, “To top it all the man I’ve been pining over at work for the last few weeks goes and presents me with a dragon egg that hatched! How can I not believe it?”

“Pining?”

Arthur nodded. “There’s something about you, Merlin. I can’t quite—” 

Merlin pressed his lips against Arthur silencing him.

“Shall I tell my sister to buy a hat?”

“Not sure yet,” Merlin leaned in to kiss Arthur again.

“To be fair, she’s probably already bought it,” Arthur laughed.

Aithusa chirruped as if frustrated at being left out. 

“So, why did you pretend not to recognise me?”

Arthur flushed, “Well, it wasn’t that… I couldn’t see properly. I wear contacts,” he clarified, “but they were hurting so I took them out and didn’t bother to put my glasses on when I nipped outside. Is wearing glasses a deal breaker?”

Merlin pretended to ponder for a moment, then said, “I don’t know, I’d have to see them.”

“Come on.” Arthur held out his hand. “How about you come in to celebrate Christmas and I’ll show you my sexy specs?”

Merlin grinned from ear to ear. Taking Arthur’s hand and walking towards the house for the first time in many years Merlin truly believed in magic and not only that, but that he might even have a tiny smattering of it himself!

[ ](https://imgur.com/b38SZe2)

THE END

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for taking a peek, I hope you like what you saw


End file.
